Fournier: Toros Playing Cards

12Mar

This deck of playing cards was printed by Fournier (Spain) in 1988. It was designed by Vinies.

Thesecaricatural playing cards dedicated to famous toreros. A torero is a bullfighter and the main performer in bullfighting which is practised in Spain, Portugal, Mexico, Peru, France and various other countries influenced by Spanish culture. Bullfighting is a traditional spectacle in which one or more bulls are baited and then killed in a bullring for the entertainment of the audience.

In Spanish, the word torero describes any of the performers who actively participate in the bullfight. The main performer is the leader of an entourage and the one who kills the bull, being addressed as maestro (master) and his formal title is matador de toros (killer of bulls). But the word “matador” by itself is not used in Spanish. The term torero encompasses all who fight the bull in the ring (picadores and rejoneadores).

Playing cards dedicated to bullfighting and toreros are quite popular in Spain. Traditionally many Spanish playing cards have Spanish Pattern or its variations. As bullfighting is quite brutal entertainment playing cards dedicated to it are often designed in comic (caricatural) style to reduce that feeling of brutality.

I agree. These are nice caricatural playing cards.
Fournier is one of the best playing card companies and it made a lot of beautiful decks.
I am sorry that it doesn’t print a lot of new decks (or at least reprints).
I am glad to see you first comment here.